All Activity

Draw for Qualifying Round 1 was made today. Here are the updated seedings: SEEDED TEAMS Benfica Lisbon (POR) 90.000 Viktoria Plzen (CZE) 50.500 FC Midtjylland (DEN) 48.250 PAOK Thessaloniki (GRE) 48.250 Maccabi Tel Aviv (ISR) 32.500 Anderlecht Brussels (BEL) 30.750 Pafos (CYP) 24.125 winner of Vojvodina Novi Sad (SRB) 5.500 - Ferencvaros Budapest (HUN) 51.250 winner of Qarabag FK (AZB) 42.750 - IF Vestri (ISL) 3.304 UNSEEDED TEAMS Besiktas Istanbul (TUR) 15.500 Twente Enschede (NED) 13.585 Tromso IL (NOR) 8.247 FC Sankt Gallen (SUI) 6.940 Hammarby IF (SWE) 6.000 winner of Dynamo Kiev UKR) 17.500 - Universitate Cluj (ROM) 5.050 winner of Hajduk Split (CRO) 10.000 - MSK Zilina (SVK) 5.500 winner of Sheriff Tiraspol (MOL) 20.000 - NK Aluminij (SLO) 4.893 winner of CSKA Sofia (BUL) 6.500 - Derry City (IRL) 4.000 Tomorrow the draw for Qualifying Round 2 will be made and PAOK will find out the first European opponent for the 2026-2027 season.

It's worth noting that Lucescu is the only manager under Savvidis to see out a complete 2nd season. There are only 2 other managers who survived the sack in their first season, those 2 being Abel Ferreira and Ivic. Ivic left in the off-season after his first full season in charge and Ferreira lasted until October of his 2nd season. The point I'm making is that Lucescu has been the only one to be able to navigate a seemingly volatile Savvidis and his management (sons etc.) I will continue to bemoan the fact that the club was so slow in making this decision, we have lost so much time. It remains to be seen if the club has a replacement lined up and ready to go. If they don't, and my feeling is that they don't then we can just add it to the list of incompetencies that management has provided us over the last 2 years since the title winning season. Again I am not anti this decision, I am anti how long it has taken to arrive at this decision.

Ivan has been milking PAOK for some years now. Razvan & Pourlotiopoulos are or were the onky good things we had.. now razvan is gone wtf

I'm not really upset about Lucescu leaving; the thing with his style is that he seems best at coming in, making a few targeted transfers, and then crushing the league until the wheels fall off. Like our Austrian friend says, he will be back at some point to win another title. I am wondering if the shakeup throughout the administration was decided upon very late as well - perhaps an impetuous move by Savvidis after he finished stewing on our bad results. Whatever. Here are some rumored replacements: https://www.instagram.com/p/DZmvbvWsPVA/ (manager profiles for each below) https://www.transfermarkt.com/marino-pusic/profil/trainer/28942 https://www.transfermarkt.com/luis-castro/profil/trainer/69945 https://www.transfermarkt.com/benat-san-jose/profil/trainer/28835

This is great news; and with Lucescu gone there should be fewer obstacles to it. We need to get younger AND better defensively.

Apparently Kedziora wants to leave and sign with Dynamo Kiev.

I think this was the right move, but poorly executed. The coaching situation should have been resolved right after the game with Panathinaikos. This leads me to believe that they really had no concrete plan after the season ended. Once again we are scrambling get things together at the last possible moment. I am really curious if we will have a coach next Monday, when the training season starts.

BYE

Looks like Lucescu's time with us is coming to an end, has been mooted for almost a month now. I think the writing has been on the wall for awhile. The Cup final loss was hard to stomach and the implosion against Panathinaikos which cost us place in Champions League qualifying no doubt sealed his fate. Although it's ending, he still leaves as PAOK's most successful coach ever and no doubt our most decorated. I have little doubt that he will return one day down the road, to steady the ship! Thanks for everything Razvan, you made us champions and returned us to the summit of Greek football! https://www.sport24.gr/football/paok-xekatharizei-oristika-to-thema-loutseskou-ola-deixnoun-diazigio-me-ton-roumano-texniko/

The Socceroos played brilliantly! Defended with numbers, compact and frustrated the Turks. The first goal was quality.

Congratz to the PAOKtzides from Oz for slaughtering the galopoula! What a nice way to wake up (game ended about 8 AM here and I will watch the highlights rightaway).

Saw that the Russkie was going to take a role as a "VP" (and I assume remain on the board). Interesting that she'd take a demotion.

The main pre-season training will take place at the Nino Sparta Training Center at Zaltbommel between June 29 - July 12. Four pre-season games will take place during that period: 01-July: tba 04-July: PAOK - Westerlo FC (Nino Sparta, Zaltbommel) 07-July: PAOK - AEK Larnaca (Nino Sparta, Zaltbommel) 11-July: tba

Sanchez did not get the start in the WC opener between Mexico and South Africa.

What's with that new CEO, Agisilaos Toumazatos?

https://inpaok.com/905425/ta-epomena-vimata-gia-ti-nea-touba-2/ I like "folia tou dikefalou aetou".

I believe Mavropanos was voted the player of the year for West Ham. He was the single reason that they almost avoided relegation. Kouliarakis is 23 and plays for Wolfsberg, rated highly. Retsos has turned aound his career and resembles that guy that secured the then record transfer for a Greek teenager. Don't care for Hatzidiakos. The next guy up would be Mihalidis. Are we world class at the back? No. But Kouliarakis (valued at $25M) and Mavropanos (valued at $18M) are more than capable.

The way Savvidis runs the club is a joke.

Once again we move at an astrnomically slow speed. These are key decisions that need to be made quickly, not a week and a half before pre-season is due to commence. There has been ample time for the club to move on Lucescu and have brought in a new manager and have been focusing on transfers and what type of player the new coach wants/needs. Instead we are here with the club seemingly scrambling late in the piece trying to figure out what the coaching staff will look like for 26-27. Poor managment and such slow decision making always sets us behind the 8 ball and it's only June. It sets us up to chase our tail for the rest of the season.

He keeps saying and repeating it that he has one more year in his contract. The question is if the Matos/Vieirinha duo want him to be the coach for the upcoming season. Rumors now are that PAOK is negotiating with some Qatari team to give them Lucescu if they pay the contract clause (4 mil). The sticking point appears to be that all this was done without Lucescu's knowledge. The worst thing is that we are week and a half from the start of training and the coaching position is questionable.

Are they solid? I hate to keep sounding negative but a CB who just got relegated with West Ham and another who plays in the Danish league is not my idea of solid. I know we don’t have much better but still. Tough to see what the answer is.

That’s very true. Hopefully someone grows into that role. They need a leader in the middle of the pitch who also has the skills to back it up.

From an attacking standpoint, we have enough talent - Tzolis/Delias/Karetsas will be stars. Pavlidis/Teteh/Kostoulas are good. We have Tzimas as well how got hurt or would have been called up. Midfield is challenging. Mouzakitis just won young player of the year. Zafeiris is good, but putting him and Mouzakitis creates a small lineup. The back four - Tzimikas/Giannoulis are fine. Mavropanos/Kouliarakis/Retos should be more than solid. Rota/Vaggianidis are average at best. With this lineup, we should be getting results. Where we have a problem is at CDM/RB.

Toursounidis did not score but his fellow PAOK-tzis Antonis Aretis did. Toursounidis is the nephew of Giorgos btw.

unless I'm mistaken, Toursounidis who scored another one of the goals is also a PAOK player, no?